The Opening Day of the Major Leagues is this Thursday, March 28 and the big free agent signings ended before the start of the MLB season.
The biggest signing of a free agent was that of Shohei Ohtani, who signed the largest contract in sports history with the Los Angeles Dodgers for $700 million dollars and 10 years.
Of the top 10 biggest signings, four were for pitchers and six for hitters, according to Spotrac.
The largest contract for a pitcher in free agency belongs to Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 12 years and $325 million dollars.
The Japanese already debuted in the Seoul Series although he did not have much success after allowing five runs in just one inning.
A Latino among the 10 best signings in free agency
Only one of the top 10 free agency signings went to a Latino player. Venezuelan pitcher and left-hander Eduardo Rodríguez got a contract $80 million dollars for four seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Rodríguez was in the orbit of a trade last season and was even close to joining the Dodgers, but the left-hander chose to reject the change and stayed with the Detroit Tigers.
One of the last players to sign was pitcher Blake Snell, who won the National League Cy Young Award in 2023.
Snell went 14-9 with a 2.25 ERA and 234 strikeouts. in 32 appearances in 2023. He won his second Cy Young Award with the San Diego Padres.
The left-hander expected to have big offers, but had to wait until the last week of Spring Training to sign a two-year, $62 million contract with the San Francisco Giants.
Blake Snell will have the opportunity to opt out of the contract after the first year, a recurring option among clients of popular agent Scott Boras.
Only one of the top 10 is for a reliever. Josh Hader signed for $95 million dollars and five years with the Houston Astros.
Hader, one of the best closers in the Major Leagues, has just spent last season in San Diego.
The left-handed pitcher has played 7 seasons for the Brewers and the Padres. He has 20 wins, 21 losses, 164 saves, a 2.50 ERA and 648 strikeouts.
Here is the complete list of the 10 biggest free agency signings in 2024:
- Shohei Ohtani – $700 million (Dodgers)
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto – $325 million (Dodgers)
- Aaron Nola – $172 million (Phillies)
- Jung Hoo Lee – $113 million dollars (Giants)
- Josh Hader – $95 million (Astros)
- Cody Bellinger – $80 million dollars (Cubs)
- Eduardo Rodríguez – $80 million dollars (Dbacks)
- Sonny Gray – $75 million dollars (Cardinals)
- Blake Snell – $62 million (Giants)
- Matt Chapman – $54 million (Giants)
Keep reading:
– These are all the pitching duels that will take place today on Opening Day in the Major Leagues
– With a cloud over the Shohei Ohtani scandal, the powerful Dodgers have their opening game